HELLO AGAIN!

From Santana: Month 2

I saw MADAGASCAR at the school in los Torretos with some of the kids from my community and neighboring communities. Funny thing is that there was a point in the movie where i was the only one watching...their attention span is VERY limited.

From Santana: Month 2

Yanira and I (mainly Yanira) have been working on some flower clips to sell in Town. We got our first buyer the other day...it was a small order but its a start: 1 dozen flowers. Some other people we have talked to have expressed interest in purchasing some too! Im really excited to she how our project works out.

From Santana: Month 2

Lastly, yesterday was MONUMENTAL! I found a little refridgerator at a Pawn shop in Las Tablas and a little toaster oven. I know you may wonder...how can this girl afford a fridge on a volunteer budget. Truth is, I can´t. I have to be very careful the rest of the month to spend only the NECCESSARY so that i can make it. But the DEAL was great and it is necessary! Imagine living 2 years without 1 cold cup of water...

From Santana: Month 2

An I made an improvised version of Pizza to test the new toaster oven!!!!!

From Santana: Month 2

I´m in the City today because I have a doctor´s appointment AND I have to pick up a very important package at the Airport at 6:30pm...DADDY´s Coming! I´m so excited for him to see Panama, where I´m living, what I´m doing, how I travel, Caramelo, and Princesa!

Other than the little update on this past week, I wanted to give a little inside scoop as to what has been going on in my little head today:

On the bus ride over here I was reading a note that Peter wrote me a while ago. Part of it said: ¨Few of us will find the freedom in ourlives to give 2 years to help the world become a little better.¨ But I started wondering... am i really making the world a little better? I have barely been able to help the few people that I have met in Santana. I think that few people find the freedom in their lives to help themselves become a little better equipt to deal with the world. I´m not even sure that 2 years is enough but I know that it will help. Everyday I question myself and I am tested. People push my limits and I push other people´s too. I actually feel as if I am living my Inter-cultural communications class from UF(sophomore or junior year), live. One thing is to think you understand the differences that exist in culutres and know the terminology: assumptions, perceptions, underlying beleifs, superficial actions... Another thing is to detect all these in daily interactions and work with them successfully.

This reminds me of something a friend, Kecia, at UF once told me when we were talking about finding the right guy. ¨Don´t worry about finding the right guy, what we need to do now is work on being the RIGHT girl so when our time comes around...He´ll find us!¨ A truely wise friend! This also can apply to other things. We don´t have the power to make the world change...however, we can work on changing ourselves and making ourselves be the kind of people that others would want to share this world with. Like that quote says...BE THE CHANGE that you want to see in the world.

I hope you are all doing great. I miss you all! Have a great weekend...I know I am!

By the way...My dad is running the Panama City Half Marathon on Sunday morning. I´ll be scoping the field to see who my competition is for next year. http://marathonpanama.com/